15 U.S. Code § 1126 - International conventions

The Director shall keep a register of all marks communicated to him by the international bureaus provided for by the conventions for the protection of industrial property, trademarks, trade and commercial names, and the repression of unfair competition to which the United States is or may become a party, and upon the payment of the fees required by such conventions and the fees required in this chapter may place the marks so communicated upon such register. This register shall show a facsimile of the mark or trade or commercial name; the name, citizenship, and address of the registrant; the number, date, and place of the first registration of the mark, including the dates on which application for such registration was filed and granted and the term of such registration; a list of goods or services to which the mark is applied as shown by the registration in the country of origin, and such other data as may be useful concerning the mark. This register shall be a continuation of the register provided in section 1(a) of the Act of March 19, 1920.

(b) Benefits of section to persons whose country of origin is party to convention or treaty

Any person whose country of origin is a party to any convention or treaty relating to trademarks, trade or commercial names, or the repression of unfair competition, to which the United States is also a party, or extends reciprocal rights to nationals of the United States by law, shall be entitled to the benefits of this section under the conditions expressed herein to the extent necessary to give effect to any provision of such convention, treaty or reciprocal law, in addition to the rights to which any owner of a mark is otherwise entitled by this chapter.

(c) Prior registration in country of origin; country of origin defined

No registration of a mark in the United States by a person described in subsection (b) of this section shall be granted until such mark has been registered in the country of origin of the applicant, unless the applicant alleges use in commerce.

For the purposes of this section, the country of origin of the applicant is the country in which he has a bona fide and effective industrial or commercial establishment, or if he has not such an establishment the country in which he is domiciled, or if he has not a domicile in any of the countries described in subsection (b) of this section, the country of which he is a national.

(d) Right of priority

An application for registration of a mark under section
1051,
1053,
1054, or
1091 of this title or under subsection (e) of this section, filed by a person described in subsection (b) of this section who has previously duly filed an application for registration of the same mark in one of the countries described in subsection (b) of this section shall be accorded the same force and effect as would be accorded to the same application if filed in the United States on the same date on which the application was first filed in such foreign country: Provided, That—

(1)the application in the United States is filed within six months from the date on which the application was first filed in the foreign country;

(2)the application conforms as nearly as practicable to the requirements of this chapter, including a statement that the applicant has a bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce;

(3)the rights acquired by third parties before the date of the filing of the first application in the foreign country shall in no way be affected by a registration obtained on an application filed under this subsection;

(4)nothing in this subsection shall entitle the owner of a registration granted under this section to sue for acts committed prior to the date on which his mark was registered in this country unless the registration is based on use in commerce.

In like manner and subject to the same conditions and requirements, the right provided in this section may be based upon a subsequent regularly filed application in the same foreign country, instead of the first filed foreign application: Provided, That any foreign application filed prior to such subsequent application has been withdrawn, abandoned, or otherwise disposed of, without having been laid open to public inspection and without leaving any rights outstanding, and has not served, nor thereafter shall serve, as a basis for claiming a right of priority.

A mark duly registered in the country of origin of the foreign applicant may be registered on the principal register if eligible, otherwise on the supplemental register in this chapter provided. Such applicant shall submit, within such time period as may be prescribed by the Director, a true copy, a photocopy, a certification, or a certified copy of the registration in the country of origin of the applicant. The application must state the applicant’s bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce, but use in commerce shall not be required prior to registration.

(f) Domestic registration independent of foreign registration

The registration of a mark under the provisions of subsections (c), (d), and (e) of this section by a person described in subsection (b) of this section shall be independent of the registration in the country of origin and the duration, validity, or transfer in the United States of such registration shall be governed by the provisions of this chapter.

Trade names or commercial names of persons described in subsection (b) of this section shall be protected without the obligation of filing or registration whether or not they form parts of marks.

(h) Protection of foreign nationals against unfair competition

Any person designated in subsection (b) of this section as entitled to the benefits and subject to the provisions of this chapter shall be entitled to effective protection against unfair competition, and the remedies provided in this chapter for infringement of marks shall be available so far as they may be appropriate in repressing acts of unfair competition.

(i) Citizens or residents of United States entitled to benefits of section

Citizens or residents of the United States shall have the same benefits as are granted by this section to persons described in subsection (b) of this section.

Section 1(a) of the Act of March 19, 1920, referred to in subsec. (a), is section 1(a) of act Mar. 19, 1920, ch. 104, 41 Stat. 533, which was classified to section
121(a) of this title, and repealed by act July 5, 1946, ch. 540, § 46(a),60 Stat. 444, insofar as inconsistent with this chapter.

1998—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105–330, § 108(1)(A), in introductory provisions, substituted “or 1091 of this title or under subsection (e) of this section” for “1091 of this title, or subsection (e) of this section”.

Subsec. (d)(3), (4). Pub. L. 105–330, § 108(1)(B), made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to this subsection.

Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 105–330, § 108(2), substituted “Such applicant shall submit, within such time period as may be prescribed by the Commissioner, a certification or a certified copy of the registration in the country of origin of the applicant” for “The application therefor shall be accompanied by a certification or a certified copy of the registration in the country of origin of the applicant”.

Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 100–667, § 133(1), made technical amendment in two places to references in the original act to subsection (b) of this section, resulting in no change in text.

Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 100–667, § 133(1), (3), (4), (5), in introductory provisions, made technical amendment in two places to references in the original act to subsection (b) of this section, resulting in no change in text, and substituted “section
1051,
1053,
1054, or
1091 of this title, or subsection (e) of this section” for “sections
1051,
1052,
1053,
1054, or
1091 of this title”, in par. (2), substituted “including a statement that the applicant has a bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce” for “but use in commerce need not be alleged”, and in par. (3), substituted “foreign” for “foreing”.

Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 100–667, § 133(6), inserted at end “The application must state the applicant’s bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce, but use in commerce shall not be required prior to registration.”

Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 100–667, § 133(1), (7), made technical amendment to references in the original act to subsections (c), (d), and (e) of this section and to subsection (b) of this section, resulting in no change in text.

Subsecs. (g) to (i). Pub. L. 100–667, § 133(1), (8), made technical amendment to references in the original act to subsection (b) of this section, resulting in no change in text.

1962—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 87–772inserted “or extends reciprocal rights to nationals of the United States by law,” and substituted provisions requiring the person’s country of origin to be a party to any convention or treaty, for provisions which required such persons to be nationals of, domiciled in, or have a bona fide and effective business or commercial establishment in a foreign country which was a party to the International Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, or the General Inter-American Convention for Trade Mark and Commercial Protection, or any other convention or treaty relating to trademarks, trade, or commercial names.

Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 87–772inserted “certification or a” after “accompanied by a” and struck out “application for or” before “registration”.

1961—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 87–333inserted par. at end authorizing the right provided by this section to be based upon a subsequent application in the same foreign country, instead of the first application, provided that any foreign application filed prior to such subsequent one was withdrawn, or otherwise disposed of, without having been open to public inspection and without leaving any rights outstanding, nor any basis for claiming priority.

Effective Date of 1999 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 106–113effective 4 months after Nov. 29, 1999, see section
1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4731] of Pub. L. 106–113, set out as a note under section
1 of Title
35, Patents.

Effective Date of 1998 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 105–330effective on the date that is 1 year after Oct. 30, 1998, see section 110 ofPub. L. 105–330, set out as a note under section
1051 of this title.

For provisions relating to applicability of amendment by Pub. L. 105–330to applications for registration of trademarks, see section 109(b) ofPub. L. 105–330, set out as a note under section
1051 of this title.

Pub. L. 87–333, § 3,Oct. 3, 1961, 75 Stat. 748, provided that: “This Act [amending this section and section
119 of Title
35, Patents] shall take effect on the date when the Convention of Paris for the Protection of Industrial Property of March 20, 1883, as revised at Lisbon, October 31, 1958, comes into force with respect to the United States and shall apply only to applications thereafter filed in the United States by persons entitled to the benefit of said convention, as revised at the time of such filing.”

Repeal and Effect on Existing Rights

Repeal of inconsistent provisions, effect of this chapter on pending proceedings and existing registrations and rights under prior acts, see notes set out under section
1051 of this title.

Transfer of Functions

For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of Commerce, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of Commerce, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 5 of 1950, §§ 1,
2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1263, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

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